


Dreamers

by dedicious



Category: Dream SMP - Fandom, Minecraft (Video Game), Video Blogging RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Apocalypse, Gen, Nervous Ranboo, Power Outage, author doesn't know how to tag
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-12
Updated: 2021-03-07
Packaged: 2021-03-14 00:54:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,407
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29909682
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dedicious/pseuds/dedicious
Summary: It's a regular old day when the power goes out. It's sudden and unexpected, but Tommy just thinks it'll be resolved in a few hours.When Tommy and Tubbo go out to visit Snowchester Park, their friend Fundy tells them that there's a bunch of people gathered around the deli. The group of people call themselves Dreamers and seem to have been preparing for this moment; the apocalypse, as they claim. They say that they're willing to take Tommy, Tubbo, and Fundy to a secret hideout as they try to survive in an environment so familiar yet so different.The Earth can be unpredictable. Things that are unpredictable can be deadly.—————|X|—————basically it's an apocalypse fic yeahthis is based on their personas/roleplay characters and not them as a person, btw!
Relationships: Antfrost/VelvetIsCake (Video Blogging RPF), everything else is platonic lol
Kudos: 1





	Dreamers

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oh, i have another chapter fic i'm working on? no, this fic.  
> anyways about my other chaptered work, i will still update it but not as often as it is more of a oneshot happy sbi fic and this has an actual plotline and more than four characters so  
> seriously i'm really excited for this idea, i'm really happy about it but idk if i'll wake up thinking it's cringey one day and abandoning it (that happened with one of my fics lmao)

It's been a long day of school indeed. Tommy's earned his relaxation time, hasn't he? He clicked the remote to his TV and it flickered on. He felt like watching some things as he had some leisurely time. He opened up Netflix and started watching his favorite show.

_Crackle._

He had spent roughly an hour and a half watching the television when the power went off. The TV turned pitch-black and the world around him became lost in darkness; he fiddled for his phone which he had sat somewhere nearby. He'd be able to use that for a light source for now. While it was still afternoon, his apartment had become rather dark and he didn't want to end up bumping into anything sharp. Finally, he grabbed his phone and he turned on the flashlight mechanic.

He turned it on and stumbled over to the kitchen, his eyes quickly adjusting to the new darkness. He heard a muffled shout from the second bedroom in his apartment—the shout of his friend, Tubbo. While the words were a little harder to make out through the wall, Tommy could tell what Tubbo was saying, " _What's going on?_ "

"Power's out! Come in the kitchen, Tubbo!" Tommy shouted in reply. Sure enough, the creak of Tubbo's bedroom door could be heard and footsteps slowly crept down the hall towards the kitchen, where Tommy was using his phone's flashlight.

Tubbo slid onto one of the stools in front of the kitchen island and sighed. "I was trying to get a good winning streak on chess when the power went out. I was doing so good, too!"

"It's okay," Tommy reassured, "you'll be able to try again once the power comes back. Speaking of when the power comes back, what do you want to do in the meantime?"

"I dunno," Tubbo replied, looking upward as he thought. "Visit Snowchester Park? I've been wanting to go with you for a bit but school's been in the way with all the stuff we need to do before winter break."

It was a pretty good idea. They didn't have much else to do; they couldn't play anything online and their apartment was mostly dark. The power would likely be fixed in a few hours at best and a few weeks at worst. He hoped it would be the first and not the latter, but who knows. He didn't control the fates or the power repair service, whatever it was called.

Tommy grabbed a coat from his hanger and made his way out of the door, Tubbo following behind him. The chilly months of winter had arrived, and he would much rather be warm when he walked than cold. As he walked down the city sidewalk, he could see his breath in the air, a wisp that dissipated almost as soon as it left his mouth. He was definitely glad he had brought a coat; he was already shivering despite the clothing he was wearing.

They reached Snowchester Park. The trees in the park were dead, bare branches reaching sideways and upward into the crisp winter sky. In the grass, there was a stone sign with three words etched on it: Snowchester Community Park. They strode in casually and sat on a bench beside the fountain, casually watching the water flow. While Tommy would never touch the water himself, he could assume that it was freezing in these temperatures.

It had been around five minutes that Tommy and Tubbo were sitting watching the fountain when Tommy felt it; a hand on his shoulder. Surprised and scared, he quickly whipped around with wide eyes to meet the attacker—oh. It was just Fundy. "Bloody hell," Tommy muttered. "You almost made me start stabbin' shit." Tommy heard Tubbo greet Fundy casually as if he hadn't just caused Tommy to almost have a heart attack.

Fundy laughed. "It's just a prank Tommy—I got you good, didn't I?" Pranks were definitely fitting for the man—Tommy had always thought of him as having a foxlike appearance. It definitely suited him—Fundy was always up to some kind of mischief or prank or whatever it was. He had been getting pretty odd recently, like the time when he threw oranges into an unsuspecting Tubbo's face and blamed it on his cat. This time, however, he had gone for the classic spook.

"Yeah sure—why are you even here anyways?" Tommy asked the question in a casual manner, quickly recovering from the scare Fundy had given him.

Fundy shrugged. "Well, I saw some people gathered around the deli—I thought that maybe you'd want to check it out. They were talking—I didn't hear much of it, but I heard some cryptic shit about the apocalypse. I've never actually seen a group of superstitious people gather up, you know. Kinda reminds me of Flat Earthers but people that insist the apocalypse will happen any time something remotely bad—"

"That's enough, Fundy," Tommy interrupted. "But I _am_ curious. Where are they?"

"A short walk from here. Come on, follow me." The foxlike man ushered them off the bench and the three walked out of Snowchester Park. After a brief walk on the sidewalk, they saw the deli, and just as Fundy had said there was a group of people gathered outside of it. Tommy calculated that there were roughly thirty outside, give or take a few. Curious enough, they weren't holding up any signs proclaiming the end of the world. They were just standing outside the deli and waiting. The deli. It was an odd choice for a meeting of people during a power outage.

They came to a stop and Tubbo decided to ask a question that they had all been wondering; "Should we try and talk to one of them and see what's going on? They don't appear very violent." Tubbo was correct. From what Tommy could see, none of them were visibly holding any weapons.

"I'll go," Tommy volunteered.

Fundy nodded. "Alright, Big T, whatever the fuck you call yourself these days. Be careful though, alright? We don't know if these people are maniacs or not."

Though what Fundy said was something Tommy had already known, he still took it into account. He searched the group and found a man in his early twenties by the looks of it. Freckles covered the man's face, as if someone had dotted it on with a pencil. The man had blond wavy-length hair and bright green eyes. Thankfully, there was nothing angry or psychotic in those green eyes; he would be safe to approach.

Tommy approached the man. "Uh, hello," he greeted, the man turning around at the sound of his voice. "What's going on?"

The man frowned slightly. "You really don't know? This is huge news."

Tommy shook his head. "Nope. Could you uhm—could you tell me?"

"Alright," the man replied, taking in a breath. "The news. Just before the power went out. It was talking about some newly discovered threat. Something about electromagnetic fields around the Earth being a threat to our electricity and being able to cause a mass power outage. They called it 'Field Day' or something because it was bound to happen soon. They started talking about how it was discovered when the power went out."

He took a moment to process what the man was saying. Tommy assumed that while the broadcaster was explaining Field Day, he was watching Netflix. That was why he didn't know. "Okay, that sounds great, but why are you gathered around the fucking _deli_?" It was a genuine question; the reaction to the sudden power outage was quite quick; how had word already traveled around to meet at the deli?

The man chuckled awkwardly. "I'm part of a group of people—we're called Dreamers. We formed a group in case of apocalypse or disaster; we decided we would meet at the deli if disaster ever struck. It's stupid, I know, but it's better off to have a group of people to stick with during the apocalypse."

So this man, whoever he was, was part of this group called the Dreamers. It was an interesting choice for a name, but Tommy didn't comment on it. "So, how long is the power outage going to last?"

The man shrugged. "I dunno. A year if we're lucky, but it'll probably last a few years."

Tommy tried to hide his panic at the words. A year _if_ they were lucky. If. "W-well, what are you doing right now?"

"We're gathering around. We'll start figuring things out and gathering supplies—we've already got a hideout prepared for when we need it." A _hideout_? Prime, these Dreamers must be really concerned about the apocalypse. A few hours ago, Tommy might've laughed at how worried they were, but now the Dreamer's concern for the end was quite useful.

Tommy prepared to ask a question, but was cut off when he heard a male voice shouting and trying to drown out the chattering crowd. "Dreamers! Quiet, I need your attention!"

The man looked towards the source of the sound, and Tommy did too. Standing in front of the entrance to the deli was a man in his mid-twenties. The man had light brown hair and glasses. "Ay, muffinheads! I've got some announcements to make."

"Who's that?" Tommy whispered.

"Darryl," the man responded, "but he goes by Badboyhalo here. Bad for short."

The man, Bad, cleared his throat. "Now that the end is here, we need to remember our plan. George, Sapnap, and Dream; you'll be raiding stores for food supplies. Niki, Puffy, and Jack are in charge of water supply. Purpled, Technoblade, and Philza are in charge of weapons. Ranboo is in charge of writing down any events, including daily reports on each member's status. Wilbur, Quackity, and Karl are in charge of any other requirements, and Skeppy and I will be leading any remaining members to our base. Any questions?" Silence. "Alright, anyone who isn't doing any job follow me."

The man beside Tommy sighed. "Well, goodbye—what even is your name? Feel free to follow us to our hideout. We're always ready for some new members, and we'll be needing them with the upcoming apocalypse."

Tommy nodded. "My name is Tommy but—where are you going?"

The man gestured towards the groups. People were already breaking off, most into groups of three but some slightly larger. Badboyhalo and another man that Tommy assumed to be Skeppy stood with a few people in front of them. "I've gotta go raid stores for food."

"What's your name?" It was a simple question, but Tommy needed to know. He needed to stop referring to him as "the man".

"Dream," the man—Dream said in response. "I'm the leader of the group, but Badboyhalo's taking charge for now. He's a pretty good guy, very honest and kind. Can get a little aggressive at times, but he's very good. You don't need to worry if you follow him to our hideout."

Tommy had yet another question. "Why are you inviting me in so quickly? I mean, I just met you. I haven't done anything to deserve to be in your group."

Dream smiled. "No, Tommy. It's the apocalypse. And obviously, working in numbers tends to end up better than working alone. If we form our own small society during the apocalypse when everyone is looking for shelter and safety, we can grow into our own civilization and city, perhaps even country. Who knows what else might happen from the apocalypse—natural disasters, weather changes, Prime knows what else. We'll do better against nature if we're in a group, and a group requires people, Tommy. You might wanna tell your friends over there to hurry up," Dream pointed towards Tubbo and Fundy, "Skeppy and Bad are going to be leaving in the next hour or so, and we'll follow them to the hideout after. If you're planning to come along with us, get whatever you need. Not want, but need. Don't bring toys or jewelry, whatever it is. Ditch your phone, too. Power won't be on for a goddamn while and the thing will just be a waste of space."

Tommy wanted to ask Dream so many questions—how did he know Fundy and Tubbo were his friends, why did he sound so mysterious? Of course, just as his curiosity burned brighter than ever, Dream turned around and walked off to get in his group. As soon as Dream had left, Tubo and Fundy came bounding towards Tommy.

"Why was he pointing at us?" Fundy asked.

"How did it go? At least you didn't get stabbed or anything." Tubbo patted Tommy on the back as Tommy chuckled softly at the joke.

"Well, uh," Tommy hesitated. "You see—" He launched into an explanation about what had just happened. Though his sentences sometimes felt a little too long or felt like a little too many words were thrown in at some points, it seemed that Tubbo and Fundy had gotten the general idea of it. During the explanation, Tommy noticed how Fundy would open his mouth to make a comment or ask a question but he'd close it. As soon as Tommy finished, Tubbo asked him a question.

"Tommy, are you planning on going with these people?"

"I... I don't know," Tommy replied honestly. "They seem nice, at least, and it's probably a smart idea to stick with a group during the apocalypse. If we do go, we'll have to go soon. Since Bad will be leading people to the hideout, we'll need to follow them. We have about an hour to prepare if we go."

Fundy rubbed his chin with his pointer finger and thumb like some kind of animated character. "Hmm. Yeah, I think we should, Tommy. More protected, we could probably create our own religion and government or some shit. Sounds fun."

"Fundy," Tubbo interrupted. "This isn't supposed to fun. This is the apocalypse!"

Fundy shrugged, a nonchalant expression on his face. "We'll all die eventually. Best that I do as much as I can before I do." That was Fundy for you. A guy who liked to joke around and play pranks and get up to trouble as much as he could. Tommy did get into a lot of trouble too; he just happened to get caught more than Fundy.

Tubbo was last to voice his opinion on the matter. "I mean, if you're going, I will too. I don't wanna be alone."

About an hour had passed since Tubbo had reluctantly agreed to come along. Now that they were all gathered back around in front of the deli, carrying backpacks. Fundy had a crate in which his cat sat impatiently mewing. They had all brought suitcases to store their stuff. Dream told them that they'd travel as far as they could in the car. The hideout was a two-hour drive away, and it was likely that the car would run out of gas before they arrived. They'd definitely have to walk some distance, but Tommy would bear through it.

Tommy hadn't really packed too much. He had packed clothes, a couple of his favorite books, a few board games, notebooks and pencils, his favorite snack, a flashlight and some batteries, blankets, a few items he was attached to, and his phone. He knew he should listen to Dream and not bring his phone; it would be useless for the most part and Tommy would likely be adjusted to living without it when it was finally able to be charged again. Still, Tommy couldn't bear to leave it behind. Silly how dependent he had grown on technology.

"Alright, everyone got everything?" Tubbo asked, backpack slung over one of his shoulders. Tommy couldn't help but feel like they were preparing to go to the airport instead of some far-off secret base. Their suitcases didn't really help that feeling.

Tommy walked to Bad and Skeppy, who were playfully bickering with each other as they loaded suitcases into a red van. Bad was grumbling to Skeppy about Walmarts when he noticed Tommy behind him. "Oh, hello there! Tommy, right?"

Tommy nodded. "Yup. This is Tubbo and this is Fundy. Has Dream told you about us?"

Bad began loading in another suitcase. "Yeah, he did. Told me that you'd be coming with us, right?"

"Yup," Tommy repeated. "Which car are we going in?"

"Hm. Car A and B are where we'll be putting people and car C and D are going to be for suitcases and whatnot. So, you'll be going in car B. You'll be with Ranboo, Schlatt and Sam. Skeppy will be driving." Bad pointed to a gray SUV. "That's car B. You're only going to be able to bring your backpack with you and the suitcases will be divided among cars, so I recommend you grab anything you need for the trip right now and hand the suitcases over when you're done."

"Got it," Tommy replied. "But who's driving car C and D?"

"Ponk is driving car C, and Ant and Velvet are driving car D. You should probably get ready."

Tommy, Tubbo, and Fundy got what they needed out of their suitcases and handed them over to Bad and Skeppy, Fundy keeping the crate with his cat, then got themselves settled in the gray SUV. They definitely weren't the first ones in the car; there was already a very American-looking man sitting in shotgun and a tall nervous guy wearing sunglasses. Tommy wondered why he would be wearing sunglasses in the winter, but didn't comment on it as he sat down in his seat.

The American-looking man turned around. He was eating Eggo cereal, straight-up. What a madlad. "Hey kid. Name's Schlatt. Welcome to Car Bees or whatever the fuck they called it. I think I'm just hungry for Applebees."

"Bees?" Tubbo exclaimed. "I love bees!"

Tommy interrupted. "Hey Schlatt and—who are you?" Tommy turned to look at the boy wearing sunglasses next to him.

The boy nervously traced his fingers along his knuckles, slipping them into the grooves. He abruptly stopped when he heard Tommy's voice. "Uhm, name's Ranboo."

"Why are you wearing sunglasses in the winter?" Tommy was genuinely curious.

Ranboo frowned. "Don't like eye contact. Sunglasses make it feel better," he said curtly. From that reply, it was clear to Tommy that Ranboo wasn't the most talkative person in the world. Tommy could understand _why_ Ranboo was nervous; having three complete strangers enter a car with you can feel a little scary. It's exactly like when you're on a bus sitting next to a stranger, except it's a lot smaller and you're going to be with each other for at least two whole hours. Also, there's an apocalypse looming overhead, so there's that to think about too.

"Hey Ranboo," Tubbo said, "do you like bees?"

"I-I dunno," Ranboo answered. "They're cool I guess."

"I know a lot about bees? Wanna hear?" Tubbo asked the question enthusiastically, and Tommy could hear Schlatt grumbling.

Ranboo rested his head on the window. "Sure." Tubbo then went on to spend the next few minutes explaining the entire bee life cycle and hive hierarchy. Tommy already knew all of it by heart—Tubbo had told him about it when he was bored. Still, he listened in. He knew Tubbo enjoyed telling people about things he loved.

Tubbo had just finished explaining when another person entered the car: a guy in his mid-twenties with green hair. This must the Sam that Bad had mentioned. He sat in the space in the middle of Fundy and Tubbo. "Uh, hello—little tight in here, uhm—I'm Sam. Who are you guys?" Sam pointed toward Tommy, Tubbo, and Fundy.

"Well I'm Fundy," Fundy began, "that's Tubbo and that's Tommy. We're kinda new here. Power went out and I saw you guys outside the deli and I thought to check it out."

" _I_ was the one who talked to Dream," Tommy interrupted. "You just stood there."

"I _saw_ them in the first place! You wouldn't even—"

"Uh, guys?" A new voice cut through their conversation, and the speaker was up at the front of the car, getting into the driver's seat. They had been arguing so loudly that they hadn't even noticed him enter. After a bit of awkward silence, he spoke again. "Did I interrupt something?"

"Nah, Skeppy, you're fine," Schlatt replied, rudely eating as he talked. "Thank Prime we'll be going soon, I don't think I could spend another minute hearing about fucking _bees_ —"

The person who had just entered was definitely Skeppy. "Alright, kids, kiddos, adultos. Buckle up. I don't want you to die, that wouldn't look very good." A bunch of clicks from seatbelts could be heard in response to this. "So, we're going to be driving for a bit. I don't really have the most gas so we'll probably end up running out in the middle of the drive. Then you'll have to carry your stuff and we'll walk the rest of the way to the hideout. Everyone understand?" Nods and "yeah"s answered. "Well alright then! I'll get going when Bad tells me to—he gave me a walkie-talkie, it's somewhere in my bag—" Skeppy began searching through a blue backpack. As Skeppy searched, Tommy figured that he might as well ask some questions to get to know the people in the car with him more.

"So—what were you doing before the power outage? I was watching Netflix." It was a simple question and probably wouldn't start much of a conversation, but better something than silence. Tommy didn't really enjoy silence. It was nearly unbearable to have to deal with the absence of noise and chatter. To him, it was a blank space to be filled and not a break to be relished. Ranboo definitely seemed to view silence as the latter of the two, Tommy thought.

"Mm," Ranboo grumbled. "Playing Portal 2."

Sam was next. "I was tinkering on a little project of mine when the lights went off."

Schlatt didn't respond, he just kept on munching the Eggo cereal.

Skeppy's searching in the bag seemed to have stopped, and a joyous shout confirmed it. "Found it! Alright, hold on..." Skeppy turned on the walkie-talkie, met with static before Bad's voice broke it.

"Thank Prime, Skeppy, I thought you had forgotten how to use a walkie-talkie."

"Hey," Skeppy responded, voice with slight anger in it. "I'm not _that_ dumb!"

"Yeah, sure, Skeppy," Bad replied. Tommy could hear the eye-roll in his voice. "I'm just about ready to go, just loading in some stuff and making some final preparations. Over." With that, the static died down as Bad finished talking to Skeppy.

Fundy's cat mewed impatiently. "Can I let her out?" he asked. "She doesn't like being in there, you know."

Skeppy paused for a moment before responding. "Uh, in a bit. When I start driving, sure. Don't let her come to the front, though. She could be distracting and I don't want t end up crashing our car and dying. That would be a bad start to the apocalypse."

"You know what cats are called?" Tommy started, "Pussies. Fundy, you can't let your pussy out until Skeppy says you can. Your pussy can't come to the front of the vehicle. Your pussy needs to wait, Fundy."

Everyone laughed at that, a lighthearted laughter despite what was going to happen, what was happening. Even Ranboo, who had been so nervous and shy, laughed with them. The apocalypse looming over them was forgotten for just a moment as they cracked jokes about pussies.

In the middle of yet another bout of laughter, Bad's voice interrupted. "Alright, Skeppy. I'm ready to go—what are you laughing about?"

"Pussies," Skeppy answered. Everyone laughed again at this, and even more at the angry "Language!!" that came out of Bad.

“Whatever, you silly little muffin. I’m ready to go. Over.”

Skeppy inserted the key and turned it, the engine humming to life. “We’re going real soon. Does everyone have what they need? We probably won’t be returning anytime soon.” Everyone nodded. “Alright then, let’s get going!”

  
  


It had been about half an hour since Skeppy hit the gas pedal and they started driving. They followed closely behind Bad, with Antfrost, Velvet and Ponk behind them in their cars.

There was an uncomfortable silence; Tommy tried multiple times to start a conversation but failed each time; no one gave him enough of a response. It was oddly ironic. He was supposed to a people-person. He was an extrovert and he thrived at being social and communicating. Sure, he could be a little annoying at times, but he still managed to be very likable.

However, he failed to get people to talk this time. It was simply because no one gave him enough of a response to work with. Ranboo’s responses were very short; his longest answer was three sentences. Sam was tinkering with something, and it took up so much of his focus that his responses were often delayed and short. Schlatt was still eating, so when he answered his mouth was full of food. Skeppy was too busy driving and Tommy already knew Tubbo and Fundy well enough.

The scenery had grown unfamiliar a while back, the trees and buildings that zipped by a new sight to Tommy. He silently betted that they would look a lot different if it weren’t for the lack of power and the coming dusk.

The sun was already nearing the horizon, where it would soon slip beyond it and plunge them into even more darkness. Skeppy already had his headlights on even though the sun was only just beginning to set. It felt strange without lights to illuminate the road.

By the forty-five-minute mark, Tommy was beginning to get hungry. He pulled out a box of Oreos that he had packed. It was a lot of Oreos, and Tommy wasn’t planning to eat them all in one sitting, so he might as well share. Prime knows how much they would have to get used to sharing with the upcoming apocalypse. “Hey,” Tommy announced, “I’ve got Oreos. Who wants some?”

Schlatt, Tubbo, and Fundy all asked for Oreos and received them. However, there was another small voice that asked for Oreos. Tommy could’ve missed it, it was so quiet. “Can I have some Oreos?” Ranboo’s voice was barely a squeak.

“Sure.” Tommy tried to make sure that his voice wasn’t too loud or quiet. If it was loud, Ranboo would probably be embarrassed, and that would only bring Ranboo’s confidence down. Tommy could tell that it had taken Ranboo a lot of courage to say that, and Tommy wanted to express that it was okay for Ranboo to speak and answer questions. He gave Ranboo eight Oreos when he had given the rest five, and Ranboo gave a weak smile of thanks. Tommy flashed a thumbs up.

By now, the sky was stained with the reds, purples, and blues that promised the coming of night. Tommy grew anxious at this. Skeppy was a great driver and all, but who knows how bad of a driver he was without any light besides his headlights. They were already pretty low on gas, so they’d probably be forced to stop pretty early into the night. It would definitely be a long and chilly walk, but at least they wouldn’t be at risk of slipping on some unseen ice and crashing in the middle of who-knows-where.

Silence still rested over them like a blanket. To some it was comforting and warming, like Ranboo and Sam. To others, it was suffocating and restraining, like Tommy. And Tommy really just wanted to kick those blankets off of him, except he couldn’t. He had completely given up trying to strike conversation. All his attempts failed. He had just taken to resting his head on the cool window of the SUV as he watched the darkening scenery zoom by.

At the hour and thirty-minute mark, a voice finally broke the silence. It was Skeppy, and Tommy silently thanked him for breaking the quiet. “Guys, we’re pretty low on gas right now. We’ll have to stop soon or whenever anyone else runs out. I think Ant’s car was the lowest on gas, but I’m not sure.”

In comedic timing, static could be heard over Skeppy’s walkie-talkie. “I’ve stopped.” It was Antfrost, his voice filled with disappointment and slight anger. “Out of gas. We’re going to have to walk the rest of the way. Over.”

The end of Bad’s car stopped, the bit of it visible in the range of Skeppy’s headlights being proof. Skeppy braked soon afterward, and Ponk’s car braking could be heard slightly too.

Fundy grumbled, groggy from his nap. His cat was asleep in his lap, too. “Are we there?” Fundy muttered, voice slightly slurred from sleepiness.

“Nope,” Sam answered. “Ant and Velvet’s car ran out of gas. Obviously, we can’t continue without them, so we’ll just walk the rest of the way.”

“Everyone, get your stuff and get out. We’re gonna be walking the rest of the way,” Skeppy announced.

Tommy was first to leave, opening his car door and jumping onto the concrete of the road. He didn’t need to worry about cars; there was such a lack of them on the road that it wasn’t something he needed to actively worry about.

A flashlight could be seen a small distance away from them, and Tommy figured that it was where Ant and Velvet were. He should probably bring out a flashlight too, Tommy thought. He reached into his backpack and took out one of the two flashlights he had brought. He clicked it on and began walking to the light source.

By now, everyone had gotten out of the car, Fundy and his cat being last. A shout could be heard from where Ant and Velvet stood. “Hey, Skeppy!” Ant shouted.

They walked towards where Ant and Velvet were, and saw that the two had already begun to unload what had been packed in the car. “It’s gonna be a little tough to carry these,” Velvet began, holding a suitcase, “but I’m sure there’s someone who’s strong enough to do it.” Velvet looked at Ant and smirked, and the two of them laughed.

"So, you're out on gas?" Skeppy asked, stating the obvious.

"Oh, really?" Ant said, the sarcasm in his voice thick. "Gee, thanks for telling us. How far along are we? I'm not sure how cold it's going to get tonight and I don't know how long we're going to be able to walk before we need to stop for one reason or another."

"Well, the hideout is over on the outskirts of L'manburg city, and we're currently at... hm, I think last I checked we're in Drywaters. There's probably a sign nearby where I can confirm our location. Still a long while to go, though. Right now, we should pack whatever we can in the car with the most gas. Ponk can drive it. The rest of the stuff we'll have to carry ourselves."

"We're going to have to carry stuff?" Tubbo asked.

"Of course," Velvet answered. "For like forty people we have a considerably small amount of things to carry. We'll be fine, or at least I will." Velvet winked at Antfrost.

Ponk and Bad arrived latest out of them all, probably because they had unloaded a lot of the stuff in their cars. Ponk patted a suitcase at his feet idly. "How much stuff am I gonna need to load?"

"Preferably the heaviest things," Bad said. "Suitcases and such. Backpacks will be a lot easier to handle, and a lot quicker. Though your car will probably end up stopping midway through, we should carry the lightest things until it does. Lighter means faster, and it's night. Who knows what's gonna be different with the electricity gone? It might be colder outside, and we'll have to use fires to keep warm. Fires mean staying still, which isn't the most convenient when you want to get somewhere as soon as possible." Though a lot of what Bad said in his rambling was rather obvious, everyone stayed silent throughout it. Bad definitely did make some good points. They still had a while to walk, and it would be harder to navigate the routes in the darkness of night.

Everyone unloaded the things stored in their cars and piled as many suitcases as they could into Ponk's car. Soon enough, Ponk waved them goodbye and they were left to walk the rest of the way.

Walking was _very_ boring.

There were some new people with them, the people that had been in car A. There was Eret, Punz, Foolish, Hannah, and Jack. Thankfully, they were a lot more talkative than the people in car B, so Tommy spent a lot of time talking to them. Tommy was ecstatic when Ranboo joined in on their conversation but didn't comment on it for the boy's sake.

Having someone to talk to as Tommy walked made it a lot more entertaining. Though his legs ached and he could feel sleep pulling at his eyelids, he felt more alive than he had in a long time. He was going to be enduring the hardest time of his life pretty soon, but he wouldn't be enduring it alone. Though he had just met these people, he already trusted them greatly. Tubbo said how Tommy's easily won trust was a weakness, but Tommy shrugged it off in this situation. These people were nice, and they were going through the same thing as him. They were all going through the apocalypse.

A lot of the talking had died down somewhere around fifty minutes into their walk. The only noises were grumbling from Schlatt and the occasional _fwoosh_ of a car driving by. Tommy looked up into the sky. It was definitely different; the stars were much more visible. Tommy vaguely remembered reading somewhere about light pollution, about how the light from cities blocked out that from the stars. It must've been the lack of power and light that make the stars so sharp and vivid in the night sky. It really was a beautiful sight, and Tommy would've spent forever looking at it if it weren't for the fact that he was walking and it hurt his neck.

Carrying things was getting rather tiring. Tommy constantly switched his backpack between his aching shoulders, trying to give one rest before switching back to it. Not to mention the backpacks and suitcases he was dragging along with him; they slowed him down so much and he wished he could just toss them aside. Obviously, he couldn't, or else someone might be left without vital items.

By about two hours (or at least felt like two hours, Tommy couldn't tell) something notable finally happened.

"Can we just take a fuckin' break? I feel like my legs are going to fall off any second." Schlatt grumbled.

"Language. We need to get to the hideout as soon as possible," Bad said. "We'll be sleeping once we're there, so quit your complaining you silly little muffin."

"Don't call me a _muffin_ , that's just fucking weird—"

"Language!"

Then Skeppy says something and Tommy wants to jump and cry out of joy—he's too tired to, of course.

"Guys, I think we've arrived."

Tommy just gives a sigh of relief. Most other people do; there are a few whoops, but not many.

There's a house in front of them. It's the only house that Tommy can see in the nighttime (not counting the outline of the city of L'manburg). The boards lining the sides of the house were in rather bad shape: they stuck up in places and the navy blue in them had long since faded. It must be the hideout, Tommy thought. It was in quite bad shape and _definitely_ wouldn't fit forty people, though. Had they really just traveled that whole way for this? Were they just being dragged off to somewhere remote so they could be killed? Questions buzzed in Tommy's mind.

Tubbo's voice cut through the cheers. "Is—that's not your hideout, is it?" His voice is quite clearly filled with disappointment and anger. Tommy feels very angry too, but he's just holding it together for Tubbo and Fundy's sake.

"Not gonna lie, this is kind of a shit hideout," Fundy said.

Bad sighs. "You guys need to wait—remember, we've thought this out." Rather vague of a response.

Ponk was waiting beside his car as the group approached. "Hello! I was lucky and had just enough gas to make it to the hideout. I've been waiting here for a while, how's it going?"

Tommy tried to hide the fury in his voice. "Not good, because I just spent the past _two hours_ walking so I could reach an ugly fuckin' blue house."

"Language, Tommy. Ponk, we're doing great. Everyone from car A and B is safe, and some of them are a little angry, but we're fine. Are we gonna start bringing stuff to the hideout?"

Ponk shrugged. "I've already moved everything from my car into the hideout. You're gonna have to move what you're carrying into the hideout yourself."

Bad went into the house, and everyone followed. Though Tommy was still angry that he had walked all that way for _this_ , he was more than ready to drop what he was carrying and slump down against a wall.

But it didn't go exactly like that.

Just before they entered the house, Bad turned around with a serious look on his face, and Tommy could tell that he would have to listen to what was coming next. "Tommy, Tubbo, and Fundy. Once you enter this house, you are officially considered a part of the Dreamers; that means that you have to keep our secrets and be kind to fellow members. This is your chance to change your mind. Once you step in, there's no going back, you're stuck with us."

Tommy reached for the door to step in, but Bad grabbed his wrist. "There's no turning back, Tommy. Our secrets will be yours, too. If you end up telling our secrets, we might have to kill you. Are you sure you want to do this?"

"Absolutely. One-hundred-percent positive."

"Are you _sure?_ "

Tommy nodded and Bad opened the door.

Tommy stepped inside.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> okay so—really wanna see y'alls thoughts on the story so far. i'm thirteen so like—yeah some stuff is gonna be bad, some logic is gonna be shit, y'know y'know. feedback is really appreciated, i want to work on upgrading my stories as i currently just kind of write and come up with ideas as i go and make altercations to the story when i feel like it. btw, i am doing long-length chapters for this fic so chapters will take a while to roll out. i want to have AT LEAST 5,000 words per chapter, preferably more. this chapter took me like five days to make tho, i had some writer's block for a bit so that didn't help. 
> 
> god, expositions are tough -looks over at an original book i'm writing that has over 25,000 words but is still in the exposition-
> 
> funny enough the power went out while i was working on this chapter
> 
> oddly specific inspirations for this fic:
> 
> -a story about a morbidly obese potato by my friend that i added on to. i started a whole apocalypse storyline—that was what mainly inspired this. some of the sentences here are even directly from that with minor edits made to fit dream smp. a lot of dream and tommy's dialogue with each other is from that.
> 
> -when i was playing de pride isle sanatorium on roblox and there was an exploiter there. it seriously felt like the apocalypse because night was pretty much permanent, we were trying to find out how we would get food and we were trying not to get killed.
> 
> sorry for the very big note block for this chapter but it's that average beginning of the fic stuff where i just kinda say things and yeah i have (DIAGNOSED) adhd so that doesn't really help.
> 
> uh and the eggo cereal is 'cause of schlatt's cereal tier list, yep.
> 
> —em—dash—

**Author's Note:**

> don't expect frequent updates but i really like this idea so i promise new chapters will roll out somewhat frequently (however i have another multiple chapter fic that i'm doing too). i really really want to make long chapters (around like 5,000-10,000 words per chapter ideally)
> 
> and yeah the whole "electromagnetic field" thing is totally from my imagination. don't fact-check it please. it's probably incorrect and i'm not even in high school lmao. also yeah some logic is gonna be shit and weird but please just roll with it for the sake of plot.


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